Best Night Vision Scopes

7 Best Night Vision Scopes In 2019 – Ultimate Buyer Guide & Reviews

Are you looking for the best night vision scopes for your rifle? You have to realize that there have been massive technological advances in the field ever since the scopes for night use were first put out in 1939. Nowadays, these gadgets aren’t just for law enforcement and military personnel, but also for hunters who shoot animals in the dark.

It’s crucial that you get the right scopes when you’re out hunting at night. At the very least, a scope can tell you if you’re looking at a dangerous animal, your own dog, or your neighbor also out hunting. The scope can of course make your shots a lot more accurate as well.

The “HD” is the real reason why so many experts invariably list the ATN X-Sight II as one of the best night vision scopes. You can actually use this to produce videos and photos with 1080p clarity. It works with your smartphone that way.

But that’s not all it offers. First off, this is a scope you can use at any time of the day. So if you’re using this at high noon, go right ahead.

Then you have the built in range finder. You won’t have to get an extra rangefinder that you may just fumble with while hunting. Use your scope, and it tells you how far ahead the target is. The magnification goes from 5x to 20x, and it has the “smooth zoom” feature that makes fine tune adjustments to offer you clear images each time.

Knowing the distance to the target helps you aim more accurately, of course. But this scope also has the ballistic calculator that gives the proper targeting solution when you put in your data such as your angle to the target.

Also, there’s even a smart e-compass in the scope. This should keep you from getting lost!

2. Sightmark Photon XT 4.6x42S Digital Night Vision Riflescope

If you’re mostly a medium range shooter, then this is the scope you need on your rifle. That’s perfect for its 4.6x magnification. You can use this for targets up to 120 meters away with only a quarter-moon for illumination. Its built-in 810nm LED IR Illuminator works just fine.

But while this magnification level is fixed, you can choose from among 6 reticle styles. You can also trot this out for daytime use as well.

In fact, it’s versatile enough that it has a couple of crossbow reticles. For hunting varmint and hog, you get 2 Duplex reticles. There’s a mil-dot reticle for holdovers, and even a German-style reticle. You get a digital windage and elevation adjustment system so that you’re able to put your bullet through your target, even if it’s at night.

This is a solid choice as its battery life is 33% longer. Yet the scope itself is 30% more lightweight than most digital night vision rifle scopes. It offers long eye relief and great resistance to bright light exposure. It’s shockproof so you don’t have to worry about accidentally banging it on rocks, and it’s also weatherproof so you can still use it if it’s raining.

As this is a digital scope, you’re able to capture everything you’ve seen through the video output feature. With its integrated weaver rail, you can also attach extra accessories.

Feature

3. Firefield 3×42 Night Vision Riflescope

Are you looking for a night vision scope good for out to 100 yards that won’t cost you a ton of money? You’re probably looking for a scope like the FF16001 NVRS 3×42. Sure it’s affordable, but it’s also quite durable as well.

This offers a titanium body for strength without the weight, with a built-in infrared illuminator. Look through it, and you can adjust the brightness of the reticles. Use the infrared constantly and your battery can still last for 20 hours. Without the infrared, that battery is rated for 50 hours of use. This only uses AA batteries, so it’s not as if you’ll find the batteries hard to replace.

Finally, there’s also the nice, “easy on, easy off” Weaver mounting bracket. Just slide it off if you want to use another scope.

A lot of scopes cost more than this and give you lower quality and fewer features. This one works, and at a bargain price to boot. Use this at night, and you should have no problem hitting a 3-inch bull’s eye at 100 yards. That means you can finally hit that coyote at night!

This gives you 3x magnification and it’s designed for .30 calibers and below. Typically, it’s best for times when you’re shooting at night at targets a hundred yards away. There’s a built-in infrared illuminator, though if you want you can also get the Night Owl detachable high-power IR illuminator.

This offers high resolution (640 x 480) so it should be clear enough to tell you what you’re looking at. It offers windage and elevation adjustments as well.

This is a terrific “point and shoot” night scope, and with quarter moon illumination it can work past 100 yards. It’s very durable, yet it’s lightweight. Some scopes give you what you pay for, but you get more than your money’s worth with this one. Lots of ex-Army hunters get this for their own personal use.

You get a choice from 3 reticles, and you can adjust each one from white to black. The controls are large and easy to use, so zeroing in isn’t a problem. Put it on your AR-15, and go crazy hunting hogs at night!

5. Bushenll 4.5X40 Equinox Z Digital Night Vision

This has drawn a lot of rave reviews, because at its price point it’s basically unbeatable. Find another scope that costs the same, and you will generally find a scope that’s not as good as the Equinox Z.

The objective lens focus is tactile and stiff, and the buttons are nice as well. Its light-gathering capabilities are decent, and it offers excellent image clarity. It automatically adjusts to various lighting conditions, and it can even offer great clarity in cases when there’s a light source right near your target. It also has a built-in IR illuminator when the ambient light isn’t good enough, and this illuminator is good for out to 100 yards.

It’s durable enough that you can drop this and not worry about it. You can still use this too even when it’s raining lightly. It has an automatic 10-minute shut-off feature as well, so you don’t inadvertently drain the batteries too quickly.

This uses 4 AA batteries, and you should stick to using rechargeable NiMH batteries. You can mount this on an AR15 with no trouble. You can also use this to record video, which makes it a great option for security work and even for police officers. Its lower price point makes it an attractive option for security guards and beat officers who can buy these on their own.

6. Armasight Nemesis6x-SD Gen 2+ Night Vision Rifle Scope

Gen 1 night vision scopes are quite basic, but if you want more advanced features you will need to upgrade to Gen 2. This gives you 6x magnification, with Diopter Adjustment from -6 to +2, automatic brightness control, detachable IR illuminator, indicators for your IR and for low battery levels, and a nice weight of just 1.9 kilos (4.2 pounds).

With this, you can tell exactly what you’re shooting at even at night from out to 100 yards. You’ll know if you’re aiming for a coon or a rabbit even at this distance. Mount the IR flashlight, and you can hit a 3-inch target from 200 yards away. Put this on your AR15 and at night you won’t even need the IR illuminator with a quarter-moon out.

This works during the day, but it’s at might when you really know you have a terrific scope to work with. Get it on your range and instead of a small pin hole, you get a small piece of dark glass in the center of the optic cover. This gives you a nice view in broad daylight. With the magnification, you can get the confidence you need to shoot at targets from more than 100 yards away.

The battery life is 60 hours, and it’s waterproof and rugged enough to comply with MIL-810F standards. The warranty is for 2 years, which should tell you how tough this scope really is.

7. ATN Gen 2+ Night Arrow 4-2 Night Vision Weapon Sight

This comes with the batteries and the IR illuminator. It fires right up, and the cross hairs are terrific. Mount it on your Yugo SKS or your .243WIN for varmint hunting, and you’ll see how well it works.

Its passive night vision capabilities are nothing short of astounding. This is for the sport hunter who wants the best, as its night vision capabilities is probably 20 times better than what you get from a typical Gen 1 scope. In fact, clarity of the image you get through the scope is so good that you may even think you get a Gen 3 scope by mistake.

This gives you a “Red on green” reticle system with ¼ MOA adjustment. You only need to adjust a single knob, and it also offers automatic brightness control. It mounts to standard weaver rails, and you only need a single AA battery. It is fog and water-resistant, and its warranty is good for 2 years.

Buyer’s Guide

So how should you pick the right one for you? Here are some factors that you need to consider:

Clarity

This is perhaps the most important feature to consider, because you don’t want to mistakenly shoot a person or your pet dog while you’re out shooting at night. yep you have to be careful about shooting, use Handgun Safes for gun safety. anyway You have to be able to identify your target at long distances.

You may have an IT illuminator to help out, and this should give you at least 75 yards to work with. The better ones can provide infrared illumination for up to 100 yards or even more.

Light Gathering Capacity

How well will your scope work when it’s dark? Some are rated for full moon use, while others work fin in just quarter-moon conditions. You can even have starlight scopes that can work even when you’ve got clouds covering the moon and you only have the stars out to give you your ambient lighting.

Weight and Design

It’s better if you have a scope that’s ergonomically designed so that you’re not saddled with a bulky scope that’s harder to aim. You also should go for lighter scopes, since heavy scopes can make you move your rifle a tad slower. When you’re out hunting, sometimes your prey can move very quickly so you only have a few seconds to shoot.

Durability

Wouldn’t it be nice if you’re a perfect shooter who doesn’t have accidents? But we’re only humans, and we tend to make mistakes like dropping the scope accidentally. When this happens, or if you tend to bump your scope against boulders and trees, it’s nice of you have a rugged scope that can take the impact.

Sometimes it can rain too, so you better check the waterproofing capabilities of the scope. At the very least, it should be water-resistant enough that it can still work when it’s raining lightly.

Generation

You can go with Gen 1 and get basic night vision capabilities for a budget price. If you can afford Gen 2 prices, you’ll be shocked at how much better everything looks through the scope. It works with moonless nights, and the life expectancy jumps from 1,500 hours to 4,500 hours. Your range can even go from 75 yards to an average of 200 yards.

Gen 3 may be out of your budget, and it’s basically for military operations. The sight range extends to 300 yards and the life expectancy is about 10,000 hours. These may be the best night vision scopes money can buy, but getting one may be overkill for regular night hunters.

Final Verdict

We’ve chosen a nice range of scopes for you to pick from, so you can go from Gen 1 basic scopes with terrific features, along with a couple of Gen 2 scopes for those with a more generous budget to work with. All of these offer fantastic value for money, so you get a lot more than what you pay for. Basically, these night vision scopes offer better performance and durability than any other scope you can get for a similar price.

Put these night vision scopes on your rifle, and finally your night time prey will be yours.